Matthieu: Some people speak of ‟compassion fatigue”, or ‟burn-out”. But do you think that love, kindheartedness, compassion can really become strained?
Jean Vanier: When I meet someone with a heavy disability, who looks at me with such tenderness, this shakes
For many years, I had hoped to have the chance to meet with Jean Vanier, the founder of L’Arche. The opportunity finally presented itself at the MEDEF Summer University, which gathers not only business leaders, but also social entrepreneurs and
Developing our own positive inner qualities is the best way to help others in a more effective way. At the beginning, our personal experience is our only reference point. Our personal, self-centered experience, which tells us that we don’t want
A Japanese researcher, specialist of laughter, took part in a meeting between the Dalai Lama and a group of scientists and philosophers, organized by the Mind and Life Institute to which I belong. This distinguished researcher was scheduled to make
‟To make laugh those who return from the fields with their hands so stiff that they can not close them, those who leave the office with their little narrow chest who forgot the taste of the air, those returning from
Laughter often follow up on smile and amplifies it. Yet all forms of smiles do not lend themselves to this transition and in some cases, laughter is not an appropriate extension of smiling. We can smile with sincere compassion to
Some researchers have spoken of a ‟geography of the smile.” By examining photographs found on 2000 pages of social networks in Europe, they found that, on these photographs, 55% of the British smiled, against only 25% of Poles and Hungarians.
According to Paul Ekman, ‟Smiles are much more complicated than most people realize. There are dozens of smiles, each differing in appearance and in the message expressed. There are many positive emotions signaled by smiling—enjoyment, physical or sensory pleasure, contentment,
The smile of the Buddha celebrates the peaceful victory over ignorance, hatred, craving, arrogance and jealousy. But there is also the smile of a loved one, the smile of one who loves, a mother’s smile and the smile of a
‟A smile is a curve that sets everything straight.”
From ‟108 Smiles”, a photo book recently published in French under the name ‟108 sourires” at Editions La Martinière
